Unlocking Memories; Inkwell Prompt #71

There is a popular saying in my country that goes like this: “Music doesn’t need permission to enter your soul.” There are things music can do for us that nothing else can do.

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“Demola, Demola. I have spoken to the manager at the gas station, and he said you should come see him at his office,” my mom said to me through my half-opened window. She had just returned from the market. I wish she had come in before telling me the ultimate news she held within her while she was on her way home.

It was April 2020, after the world-wide lockdown. Things haven’t been going too well at home because most offices have been shut down and factories have been closed due to the COVID-19 pandemic. My dad was the only one going out to work so the family could get something to feed on, which my mom wasn’t happy about.

“You know there are some places that are open to workers; you can apply there, work, and help your dad. The burden is too much for him." She said to me that it was early in the morning after our breakfast. I didn’t know the response to give back to her, so I said, “I would do any work you get me.” Three days later, she brought the news of the gas station, she wasn't joking about it.

After I met with the manager, I resumed at the gas station. I was an attendant at the gas station. I was already a degree holder; sometimes I get looked down upon because I was working as an attendant. I had to leave my cosy office to assist my family during the lockdown; if not, there would not be enough food at home. I didn’t let their words get to me because I knew what I was worth.

Most of the time, when I notice there aren’t many people to attend to, I plug in my headphones and listen to this particular music by Olamide ft. Omah Lay, titled Infinity. This song was on replay most of the day at the gas station. I listened to this song so often that I could sing it word-for-word.

After the lockdown, I resumed my work, and this took a different turn. After our Friday meeting, I was sitting in my cosy chair with my AirPod on while playing music. The music was on shuffle, and surprisingly, “Infinity” started playing, and at that moment, I saw myself back at the gas station. The more the music flows into my ear, the more I get strong memories of what happened at the gas station.

I became scared at a particular point because even the instruments in the music brought back memories. There were good and bad memories; some I wanted to remember and others I didn't. I stopped listening to that music unless I wanted to remember my struggles and tell myself, “No matter what the challenge is, we can overcome it.”

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